Theatre: A reflection of society:
Vinod Chandrashekhar Dixit
Theatre reminds me of a famous quote by William Shakespeare that “All the world is a stage, and all the men and women merely players; They have their exits and their entrances, and one man in his time plays many parts.
“Don’t we think this quote holds true, especially today March 27 when we are celebrating ‘World Theatre Day’. It is celebrated to highlight the importance of theatre as nowadays it is losing its importance. A theatre is a reflection of the society. It is rightly said that “Movies will make you famous; Television will make you rich; but theatre will make you good.”The said art form is not only one of the oldest modes of entertainment but is also a way to put across social messages.
For many centuries now, the theatre has constantly been one of the major forms of entertainment for the people. The meaning of the word Drama derives from the Greek “dran’ which means “to do” and the word theatre originates from the Greek, “Theatron”, literally meaning the “seeing place”.
A place not only where we look, but where we ‘see’, we ‘get’, we understand. International Theatre Institute (ITI) initiated in 1961 to celebrate World Theatre Day across the world to value and importance of theatre.
On this day, ITI host a yearly message, spoken by a chosen famous theatre performer, to share their views about the art of theatre and its future. In 1962, the first message was spoken by Jean Cocteau in 1962. The theatre has been one of the most popular forms of entertainment since the Greeks, and the acting industry today is a hard but potentially prosperous career.
World Theatre Day has been created to pay tribute to this incredible form of entertainment. People have enjoyed going to the theatre for many years now. It is a great way to spend time with loved ones and to witness live entertainment. Nowadays, the importance of theatre is declining so this day is a wake-up call for governments, politicians, institutions, and people to recognise the value of theatre to the individual, people for economic growth as well.
World Theatre Day also acts as a wakeup call for governments, politicians and institutions to recognise the value and significance of Theatre and also to bring forth the point of the potentiality of the art form to contribute to the state’s economic growth.
ITI has more than 85 centres throughout the world; it also encourages colleges, schools, theatre professionals to celebrate this day. The main purpose to celebrate the World Theatre Day is to highlight the importance of art form around the world, to make people aware of the importance of the value of art form, to enable the dance and theatre communities to promote their work on a broad scale and to make aware opinion leaders about the value of these forms and support them and also to enjoy the art form for its own sake.
The theatre has always been under threat of extinction, especially with the rise of the cinema, television and now digital media. The theatre has renounced mass communication and recognized its inherent limits; two beings facing each other, communicating feelings, emotions, dreams and hopes. Scenic art is relinquishing story-telling in favour of discussing ideas.
The theatre reflects humankind’s existential anguish and unravels the human condition. It is not its creators who speak through the theatre, but rather the society of the epoch. World Theatre Day is, no doubt, one of the most remarkable events. We cannot deny the fact that the theatres have a very inextricable association with social, educational, and political life. It provides a platform where the artists can share the ideologies and ideas with the audience.
(The author is a columnist based at Jodhpur Tekra in Ahmedabad)
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